Getaway drivers jailed for involvement in Limerick shootings

Eoin Reynolds

Two getaway drivers involved in separate shootings arising out of the same violent gang feud in Limerick have each been sentenced to six years in prison by the Special Criminal Court.

One of the shootings was recorded from inside the car stolen for the job, and the footage later went viral on social media, the court previously heard.

The three-judge court heard that John O'Donovan (19) and Shane Blackhall (21) were third-tier members or 'fixers and enforcers' for the O'Donoghue organised crime group.

Judge Patrick McGrath said the evidence showed that the O'Donoghue group has been involved in a violent feud with the Collins organised crime group since 2022.

The feud has led to 36 shootings and various attacks using explosives, the judge said, and a garda operation is in place to combat the violence.

Judge McGrath said Blackhall was the driver of a Volkswagen Scirocco which was used in a drive-by shooting on a home belonging to members of the Collins family on Hyde Avenue in Limerick on January 6th 2025.

The person sitting in the front passenger seat fired 9mm calibre bullets from a Glock semi-automatic pistol, leaving a hole in the wall of one house.

Blackhall crashed the car into a lampost at a busy roundabout some five minutes away. When gardaí examined the Volkswagen, they found Blackhall's DNA on the driver's side airbag.

When gardaí investigating the shooting searched Blackhall's home, they discovered cocaine valued at €1,730, heroin valued at €420, and herbal cannabis worth €26,200.

Blackhall, of Mungret Court, Watergate Flats, Limerick, previously pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine, cannabis and diamorphine for sale or supply at Mungret Court on June 10th 2025.

He further pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm on January 6th at Hyde Avenue in Limerick in circumstances giving rise to a reasonable suspicion that he did not have it for a lawful purpose.

Seven other counts were taken into consideration by the court.

O'Donovan, of Valley View, O'Malley Park, Southill, Limerick pleaded guilty to a charge that between April 26th and May 8th 2025, with knowledge of the existence of a criminal organisation, he participated in or contributed to activity intending to, or being reckless as to whether such participation or contribution could, facilitate the commission of a serious offence by that criminal organisation or any of its members, to wit, possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Three further charges were taken into account.

Judge McGrath said O'Donovan is also at the third tier of the crime group.

Late at night on May 8th 2025, a number of shots were fired at various houses on Hyde Avenue. Some bullets went through the windows of houses, forcing the occupants to dive to the ground.

Ballistics experts were able to say that the same Glock pistol that was used in the earlier attack was used in this attack. The firearm has never been recovered.

The people responsible videoed the shooting from inside the Audi they had stolen for the job and the footage later went viral on social media, Judge McGrath said.

John O'Donovan was the driver of a Lexus that met the 'hit team' nearby before they set the Audi on fire, the judge said.

O'Donovan has 30 previous convictions for misuse of drugs, criminal damage and road traffic offences.

Blackhall has 26 previous for misuse of drugs, escape from custody, unlawfully taking a vehicle and road traffic offences.

In relation to O'Donovan, the judge found that his acts of assistance were significant in the lead-up to and on the day of the shooting. There was, he said, no doubt that he was aware of the plan to carry out a shooting and the possible consequences of discharging a firearm in a residential area from a moving vehicle.

Blackhall, the judge said, was the driver of the Scirocco when the shots were discharged.

He said the discharge was highly dangerous and could have resulted in the death or serious injury of members of the public who have no involvement in the feud.

In mitigation, the judge credited both men for their early guilty pleas. He said both were young men when the offending occurred and since going into custody they have worked hard in prison to deal with their issues and to rehabilitate.

He sentenced Blackhall to eight years in prison with the final two years suspended for three years. The sentence was backdated to June 10th 2025.

He sentenced O'Donovan to seven years with the final year suspended, backdated to June 15th 2025.

Sgt Eoin McDonagh previously told counsel for the State, Maddie Grant BL that the charges arise out of an ongoing feud between rival factions in Limerick.

He said that on January 6th 2025, there was a report from a member of the public of the discharge of a firearm at Hyde Avenue.

There were then further reports of a vehicle having crashed into a lamppost at the nearby Ashbourne Avenue, with two males in balaclavas seen leaving the crashed vehicle. Significant damage was caused to the bonnet and front bumper, with both first airbags having been activated.

The vehicle was seized, with 9mm shell casings found in the rear of the car.

Gardai recovered five spent 9mm casings at the scene, and found an indentation on a wall which was caused by a bullet having hit it. The sergeant said forensic swabs were taken from the airbags, with Blackhall’s DNA found on the driver’s airbag.

Besides the drugs found at the defendant's home, gardai discovered images on his phone offering cannabis for sale in various quantities, as well as tick lists containing names and amounts owed.

Sgt McDonagh said that Blackhall took responsibility for the drugs, telling gardaí that he was holding them as he had a €7,000 drug debt, claiming that both he and his family members had been threatened.

Det Garda Gary Stack told Ms Grant that on the night of May 8th 2025, there was an anonymous call from a member of the public who heard gunfire and a car speeding away from Hyde Avenue.

He said that three houses were shot at, with various members of the Collins family making statements to the gardaí about bullets smashing windows in their homes.

One woman made a statement that the gunshot shattered her front window, which had Perspex on it to make it harder to break, and she could hear gunshots going up the road.

Another woman said she heard a number of bangs, which she knew were gunshots because of previous incidents, so she went straight to the ground to protect herself. She said that a vase exploded after the shot came through the front window.

Det Garda Stack said gardaí discovered casings for nine bullets at the scene and confirmed that they were linked to the firearm that was used in the previous shooting.